My youngest son asked me why I had numerous pictures of Mason bees mating. Mason bees are shy and usually move away when you approach a flower where they are foraging. However, while mating they are doing the same thing for enough time to set up the camera for a shot. I like to have the sun glinting off their beautiful colours. You can see a few pollen mites on both the male and female. (Click on the photo to enlarge.)

June blueberries start to blossom just when the queen bumblebees become active after winter hibernation. It’s rare for a bumblebee to pose for picture. The queens usually want to buzz around you in large circles.